Peter Furler: "God has a plan. We see signs of it like echoes. Great paintings and songs are echoes of what things ought to be like."

With multiple GRAMMY nominations and Dove awards, "Songwriter of the Year" nods and musical talent that has driven the sales of five RIAA Certified Gold records, over seven million albums sold and 25 No. 1 hits--including classics such as ''He Reigns", ''Shine", ''Something Beautiful" and ''It is You," Peter Furler returned to music after ending his long tenure in 2009 as the lead singer of Newsboys, the band he founded in Mooloolaba, Queensland, Australia. Refreshed and reawakened to the joy of music, last year Furler returned with his first solo album, On Fire.

I had the great opportunity to interview Peter about his hit single from On Fire, "Matter of Faith," the day after seeing his performance at WinterJam in Reading, Penn. Peter Furler's set was a blast. I had seen him 10 times as the former frontman for Newsboys, and WinterJam 2012 was truly a highlight. His set was high energy and worshipful and it was fun to see Peter Furler and Phil Joel reunited. Here are the answers to the questions I asked Peter.

Please describe the personal message behind the song "Matter of Faith."

This song is really about belief--what we believe. Plain and simple. We're seeing a great uprising of unbelief. Everyone has an opinion, many without a foundation. We've got a whole culture hearing different ideas opposed to God. Many are not sure what they believe, so they'll end up believing anything. Some just want to believe what best suits their wants. Without faith, it's impossible to know the one who has the facts: God. This song is not just about the future, but also about God's plan being fulfilled in us now. One day Jesus will make all things new.

Did you base the song on any Bible verses?

Ecclesiastes 3:10-12: "I have seen the burden God has laid on men. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live."

… Isaiah 25:8: "He will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears from all faces;

he will remove his people's disgrace from all the earth. The LORD has spoken."

… and Revelation 21:4: "He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

How can listeners apply that message in their walks as Christians when they listen to the song?

I've been really inspired by the author N.T. Wright. His writing has really affected my thinking in the last several years. He was the former Bishop of Durham in England. He opened my eyes to a lot of Kingdom thinking. A lot of times we as Christians come to know Christ and then we kind of wait around and deal with life the way everyone else deals with it. We kind of hope that things will work out and when we die we'll go to Heaven. There's a half-truth there, of course. Wright's thought is that when Jesus came, He started that new Kingdom.

Like I said at WinterJam, God has a plan. We see signs of it like echoes. Great paintings and songs are echoes of what things ought to be like. Like we saw during WinterJam, the great assembly coming together before God and singing songs together. There's power in that which goes levels beyond groups of people getting emotional. When we sense a great victory even in the world, like the winner of the Super Bowl, they will feel like they received justice for what they worked hard to accomplish. These are all echoes and signs of how things are meant to be, and how things are going to be.

It's been eye-opening to me, and this song is based on the Truth of Scripture about the new order of our world, when all things are new, and the old order has passed away. Some aspects of the Kingdom can be here with us now. Jesus replaced the Temple. The Temple was the place people came to worship and people thought that's where Heaven and Earth met in the Holy of Holies. Jesus was a Prophet, Priest and King. Having Christ in our hearts, we have a new form of the temple ruled by our King in us.

Lyrics:

We all know and believe

There's more than what we see

Eternity is deep inside our hearts

So we watch and wait, until that day

When in a flash this world will pass away

Heaven and earth will kiss each other

The sun will rise and light a brand new day

Every knee will bow unto Your name

All the saints will shout and sing Your glory

As a matter of fact, it's a matter of faith

It's a matter of faith

New clothes, new names

Every tear drop is wiped away

Fears gone, love and peace remain

From the east to the west, the sky splits wide

In the blink of an eye, our two worlds collide

Heaven and earth have kissed each other

The sun will rise and light a brand new day

Every knee will bow unto Your name

All the saints will shout and sing Your glory

As a matter of fact, it's a matter of faith

It's a matter of faith

So even when it seems so long to watch and wait

Still our hearts are full of yearning for that day

And even in the dead of night we walk by faith

Lord, we stand upon the promise that You made

The sun will rise and light a brand new day

Every knee will bow unto Your name

All the saints will shout and sing Your glory

As a matter of fact

The sun will rise and light a brand new day

Every knee will bow unto Your name

All the saints will shout and sing Your glory

As a matter of fact, it's a matter of faith

It's a matter of faith

It's a matter of faith

It's a matter of faith

It's a matter of faith

It's a matter of faith

It's a matter of faith

We all know and believe

There's more than what we see

Eternity is deep inside our hearts

IVP's Bible commentary: "The series of visions that began at Revelation 19:11 now draws to a close. The positive benefits of "the second death" become explicit in John's vision of a new world. Here we find an answer to the question, If those whose names were not written in the book of life were thrown into the lake of fire, what about those whose names were written there? The answer given to this question is visual and audible. John sees a new world and then learns its significance."

This is a great return from one of Christian music's all-time most prolific songwriters, having written over 25 No. 1 songs in his time with Newsboys. What separates Christian music from secular music isn't the musical hook--as this song demonstrates a very contemporary sound that could be heard on mainstream radio.

What separates Christian music and Christians from the world is the message of the songs. Right from the beginning, Peter's songs have had bold Christian messages in songs like "Not Ashamed", "Shine", "He Reigns" and "In The Hands of God." This song is very edifying and encouraging and truly reflects the message of the Bible, which is found in the great chorus: "The sun will rise and light a brand new day, Every knee will bow unto Your name, All the saints will shout and sing Your glory, As a matter of fact, it's a matter of faith, It's a matter of faith." As we just celebrated Resurrection Day on Easter, we can all know, "it's a matter of fact," He is Risen!!

As prophesied in the Old Testament in Isaiah and fulfilled by Jesus, one day "every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord." That day will ultimately happen as described in Revelation 21:4 "There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

That's the Good News that this song is celebrating. What's most amazing about our Savior Jesus is that of all the ways He could have chosen to save us, He chose to come down and be the least among us and a suffering servant. The main message of the song is to hold on to Christ, as something better is coming. Amen to that!

Posted April 10, 2012 | NRT Lead Contributor Kevin Davis is a longtime fan of Christian music, an avid music collector and credits the message of Christian music for leading him to Christ. He lives in Pennsylvania with his wife and three daughters.

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